Optimal Field use Notebook
rough_wood
Posts: 61
This thread is inspired by:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Wg0TRdojso
and the PropII thread where prople talked about how bad the current windows based computers are.
I want to know what is a good portable and durable laptop that I could·set on the ground while running without worrying too much about it? Currently I have a Dell Latitude D830, and it is a pain in the butt to take around if I want to do in field debugging. Plus the huge cooling holes seem like dirt vacuums.
I want a simple laptop with plenty of USB ports, maybe an RS232. I would like it to be able to run Matlab.
Mainly I want a laptop that would be dedicated to coding,· sending and receiving data (Good wifi and bluetooth), something that can do everything Prop related, and yet not have all these windows frills that take up resources.
Also a read/write port for MicroSD etc cards.
I am also open to a new operating system. I have a very computer literate friend who loves Ubuntu, but I have no idea how user friendly or compatible it is with most things. Probably the most complicated thing I know to do with my computer is IPConfig etc.
Any suggestions?
Even lacking a CD Drive isn't that bad cause most the software would be installed online. I am looking to spend under $500, which my student discounts seems to make possible.
I looked at Dell Mini10s, Acer Aspire One's, etc.
Reliability is important to. I don't expect to update this laptop it will just be a little shop/field workhorse that I can toss in the back of a truck and get dirty.
If there are any other features you recommend let me know, for now I am still looking for anything that satisfies these requirements I've mentioned.
Thanks, and sorry for the scatterbrained post, I type the way I talk/think.
Keith
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Wg0TRdojso
and the PropII thread where prople talked about how bad the current windows based computers are.
I want to know what is a good portable and durable laptop that I could·set on the ground while running without worrying too much about it? Currently I have a Dell Latitude D830, and it is a pain in the butt to take around if I want to do in field debugging. Plus the huge cooling holes seem like dirt vacuums.
I want a simple laptop with plenty of USB ports, maybe an RS232. I would like it to be able to run Matlab.
Mainly I want a laptop that would be dedicated to coding,· sending and receiving data (Good wifi and bluetooth), something that can do everything Prop related, and yet not have all these windows frills that take up resources.
Also a read/write port for MicroSD etc cards.
I am also open to a new operating system. I have a very computer literate friend who loves Ubuntu, but I have no idea how user friendly or compatible it is with most things. Probably the most complicated thing I know to do with my computer is IPConfig etc.
Any suggestions?
Even lacking a CD Drive isn't that bad cause most the software would be installed online. I am looking to spend under $500, which my student discounts seems to make possible.
I looked at Dell Mini10s, Acer Aspire One's, etc.
Reliability is important to. I don't expect to update this laptop it will just be a little shop/field workhorse that I can toss in the back of a truck and get dirty.
If there are any other features you recommend let me know, for now I am still looking for anything that satisfies these requirements I've mentioned.
Thanks, and sorry for the scatterbrained post, I type the way I talk/think.
Keith
Comments
Electrovia scribbler is what I am using at the moment.
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24 bit LCD Breakout Board coming soon. $21.99 has backlight driver and touch sensitive decoder.
Being that it's pretty small it perfect for me to take w/ me on motorcycle trips and field debugging of Prop projects. Have such a small machine with a small screen is a tradeoff. It's not idea for working on 10,000 lines of code, but for making tweaks it idea. It's not the fastest thing around. I have Office 2007 and Visual Studio 2008, and of course the Prop Tool.
I like the fact that is has no moving parts, so if I'm tuning my truck going down the road I don't have to worry about a HD crashing.
I use it as a dedicated email reader & web browser that I remote into from my larger laptop 8-10 a day. So, I think it's pretty reliable. The only issue I have had was the Mic wire shorted out and started smoking. I thought the thing was toast. Normally when you let the smoke out, it’s all over. But the main board detected the short on the USB connection and shut itself down. Once the wire was removed the machine has worked fine since.
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Jim Fouch
FOUCH SOFTWARE
No RS232 port, but it does have UTP Ethernet. Has 3 USB ports, a multi-media SD/MMC card reader,
built-in and external speaker/mic, web cam on the LCD, and VGA connector. The VGA display
resolution is 800x600 or 1024x600. The device can be configured to run with the LCD closed of course.
The kicker for me is having over 8 hours of battery life per charge cycle and I can do *anything* with it.
Ruggedization may have value, but it's probably too expensive and probably not as rugged as one needs anyway.
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www.mikronauts.com Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheusdual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, Mem+2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
Propteus and Proteus for Propeller prototyping 6.250MHz custom Crystals run Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller
The SD seems to be a reader only, are you able to write to SD cards?
As far as that Asus eeePC I'll have to look in to that, there seem to be alot of options. The Aspire seems to mostly revolve around color choices, but I've had a crazy day and haven't had time to check deeply into this yet.
Thanks for the input so far!
It seems like all the newer ones are getting away from the SSDs and using 160GB or 250GB normal HDs. As long are you not banging it around when its running, they should be ok. That's also why they have dropped from ~$500 down to ~$300.
On a recent motorcycle trip I found the screen to be useless in the sun. I actually had to hide in the bushes to see the screen while trying to send an email. My wife even has pictures... LOL
But for a second machine it's pretty nice. I've been eyeing some of the newer ones with larger screens, but for the money I have put into this one and I really have it the way I want it. The keyboards seem to be nicer/larger on the newer netbooks too.
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Jim Fouch
FOUCH SOFTWARE
Mine has 1G ram, 160GB HD, two SD slots (read and write), three USB2.0, vga out, webcam, mic, stereo speakers, XP etc
It is a wonderful little portable.
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www.mikronauts.com Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheusdual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, Mem+2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
Propteus and Proteus for Propeller prototyping 6.250MHz custom Crystals run Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller
I have the AOA 150-1777 and I love it.
I only have two complaints:
· The vertical resolution is 600. Some program require 768.
· No Bluetooth. This is easy to fix with one of those really small bluetooth adapter, but then you lose a USB port.
Other than that it is great. Plenty fast enough. Really light weight.
I just ordered the newer Acer·751H-1196 and I cannot wait to get it. It will correct BOTH of my complaints, plus it has a much bigger keyboard, 2GB RAM, 250G HD, 11.6" screen, 6 cell battery, etc. etc. Can be had for < $350 from eCost.com· <- This was a scam...They cancelled my order without any explaination.
Bean.
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Does that byte of memory hold "A", 65, $41 or %01000001 ?
Yes it does...
Post Edited (Bean (Hitt Consulting)) : 11/25/2009 11:13:46 PM GMT
I'll probably move linux to the solid state disk and let the SD slot free.
To sum it up (I think it applies to a lot of netbooks)
Advantages:
Cheap, light, plenty of power, long battery life, many ports
Disadvantages:
It cannot be you main machine. Screen and keyboard are small.
How did you find one with SD read/write? I am looking all over with no results. Some of these are under $300 and you can grab another 1GB ram and make them suitable for probably about any non graphics intensive task.
Some sources say maximum 1.5GB RAM while others say 2, anyone know which is accurate? Looking at the 8.9's.
Thanks,
Keith
I used an 8GB SDHC card without problems.
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www.mikronauts.com Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheusdual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, Mem+2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
Propteus and Proteus for Propeller prototyping 6.250MHz custom Crystals run Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller
Thanks.
I am considering going to 1.5GB ram, and 500GB disk [noparse]:)[/noparse]
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www.mikronauts.com Please use mikronauts _at_ gmail _dot_ com to contact me off-forum, my PM is almost totally full
Morpheusdual Prop SBC w/ 512KB kit $119.95, Mem+2MB memory IO board kit $89.95, both kits $189.95
Propteus and Proteus for Propeller prototyping 6.250MHz custom Crystals run Propellers at 100MHz
Las - Large model assembler for the Propeller Largos - a feature full nano operating system for the Propeller
ASUS netbooks are far better than Acer as far as I'm concerned. Much easier to hack, no 512MB SDRAM on the board so you can easily up to 2GB SDRAM by plug-in for < $30 USD these days. Build quality is excellent and no reflective LCD screen so they should be OK outdoors. But you still have the annoying 1024x600 display on the cheap models; and then there's the lousy Atom processor and power hungry northbridge chipsets that still abound (this will change starting Q1 next year). I suggest you find one with an N330 Atom which is dual core and supports hyperthreading.
Be forewarned though, it is not likely you will see an Intel based netbook that is cheap and supports Virtualization Technology (VT) in hardware. This is necessary for Win7 to run in WinXP compatibility mode. So plan on WinXP only - or move to Linux (I recommend Mepis, unlike Ubuntu installs with "proprietary" stuff like Flash and Java which IMHO are necessary evils for a decent Web experience).
Lenovo - excellent build quality and support (still). Keep an eye out for the Lenovo X100E. This looks like it may be a real notebook with 11.6" 16:9 HD display. Costs < $500 at first reports and runs the new AMD/Neo combo. Availability is supposedly next January. It has purportedly 5+ hours battery life out of the box. Not sure about VT support though. There's a Lenovo X200E that has an Intel NV processor and gives 12 hours battery life; but will cost around $1000.
True RS-232 you're not going to get with any new netbook or laptop these days. As for SD support, < $10 you can get a USB dongle or adapter. If you're OK with WinXP or Linux/BSD, then think about a refurb or used older laptop. I use IBM Thinkpad TXX serials (T30, T42, T43 etc.) a lot in the field. 1GB SDRAM max on some of the older models (OK for WinXP) and you'll likely have to buy a SDRAM module to upgrade. But they work great, are almost indestructible and oh-yes, most have a real serial and parallel ports. USB1.0 only though native on some older models, but you can solve that with a Cardbus USB2.0 adapter. Venerable pre-Lenovo IBM machines can be found cheap (refurbs are $200-$350 typically check www.overstock.com or ebaY.) Battery life isn't so great though; get some extras.
All of these machines will likely work with the Propeller Tool.
Regards, David
If it were me, I would get a nice, used Thinkpad. Those things are rugged as hell, have good overall compute, screens, and the larger capacity battery can go 3+ hours, depending on the model you choose.
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The Mini10v would be in the bag but Dell put in new red tape in the past couple weeks making it so you can only get student discount if you don't customize the computer, which defeats the whole purpose of going Dell.